ALBAWABA - After spending 40+ years in an Austrian prison, Palestinian Prisoner Emad Omran, also known as Tawfiq Shofali, has died in his cell in Krems-Stein prison in Austria.
Born and raised in Burin, Omran was arrested in Austria after being among a team that executed an operation in Vienna airport, which resulted in him sustaining a major injury. The operation came as a response to the Israeli massacre of Sabra and Shatila, which killed thousands of Palestinian and Lebanese civilians.
Omran joined the Palestinian Revolution ranks earlier in his days, and took part in many operations early in the 1980s. In 1985, along with several others, he carried out an attack on an Israeli aircraft operated by EL AL Airlines, after which he was arrested and prosecuted in Austrian courts.
Following the attack, accusations were thrown around regarding the responsibility behind the attack. The Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) was accused of supporting the perpetrators, however, Yasser Arafat, then chairman of the PLO, denied the accusations and strongly condemned the attacks.
